Back East
by Arana Mai
Summary: Jackie invites Arnold and Helga to go back east to her sister's farm in Virginia. Improved version; this one has PARAGRAPHS!


Author's note:  
  
This is the newer and hopefully improved version of "Back East." My sincerest apologies to those of you who got headaches from TRYING to read my fanfic from the lack of paragraph structure. I HAD paragraphs in the word processor, but in the madness of uploading the stories to FF.net. well, they messed everything up.  
  
Anyway, I've fixed a few things, including the lack of paragraphs problem. Here you go. Enjoy!  
  
Arana  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
[b]"Back East"[/b]  
  
The school bell rang, one of the most glorious sounds Arnold thought he had ever heard. It signified the end of the last day of school. Finally! He would have two whole months with no PS 118!  
  
Jackie waited up for him by the lockers outside the classroom door.  
  
"So, have you got any plans this summer?" She asked.  
  
"Naw, I'll probably just stay around the house," Arnold replied.  
  
"Yeah, same here."  
  
  
  
[b]TWO DAYS LATER[/b]  
  
  
  
"Jackie! You've got mail!" Arnold shouted to her as he walked up the stairs to deliver the letter.  
  
"From who?" Jackie poked her head out of her door. Arnold read the return address.  
  
"Some people in Virginia," he said.  
  
"Fork it over!"  
  
Jackie snatched the letter out of his hands. She tore open the envelope and started to scan the contents.  
  
"Well?" Arnold asked.  
  
"It's from my sister," Jackie said. "She owns a cattle ranch back east. She's inviting me to come over and help her out for part of the summer."  
  
"Sounds fun," Arnold declared.  
  
"That's not all," Jackie continued. "She's allowing me to bring along two friends so I won't get lonely out there by myself." She paused, looked up at Arnold, and grinned. "Wanna go to Virginia?"  
  
* * *  
  
"I don't know how you talked me into this," Helga scowled.  
  
They were sitting on an airplane going non-stop to Virginia, and had been on there for more than a few hours.  
  
"You agreed to come, Helga," Jackie said.  
  
"It's too late to turn back now," Arnold agreed.  
  
"I'll be stuck on a ranch with a bunch of walking hamburgers for the next two weeks. What loads of fun."  
  
"Helga," Jackie turned to look at the scowling blonde-haired girl. "Two things: Shut. UP."  
  
* * *  
  
The plane landed smoothly. They quickly got off the plane and went into the airport terminal. Jackie scanned the crowds for her sister. She led the other two to her.  
  
"Ella!" Jackie said. Her sister turned and, after realizing whom she was, smiled. She patted Jackie's head.  
  
"Hello, Jackie," she said. "You haven't changed much." She didn't catch Jackie's smile fade slightly as she looked back to the two kids trailing Jackie. "Who are they?"  
  
"These are my friends, Arnold and Helga."  
  
Ella nodded her welcome.  
  
"This is your first trip to Virginia?" she asked. Arnold and Helga nodded.  
  
"We're just so happy to be here," Jackie said.  
  
"Oh, ye-" Helga's sarcastic remark was cut off when she was elbowed in the ribs by Jackie.  
  
"Of course we are," Arnold said for her. "I can't wait to look around."  
  
"Good," Ella said. "Come on, let's go home."  
  
Aside from the craggy mountains that lined the horizon a mile or so away, thick trees and a few pens of cattle, nothing else decorated the grassy hills.  
  
"Where is everything?" Helga asked.  
  
"You're looking at it," Ella replied.  
  
"Wow," Arnold said. "It's so.[I]empty[/I]."  
  
They all stepped out of the car and started unloading things from the trunk. "Isn't it great?" Jackie asked, grinning.  
  
They started to walk up to the house.  
  
"Yeah, if you like solitary confinement," Helga mumbled.  
  
"Cow pie..."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
[I]Splat[/I].  
  
They entered the house (Helga came in last, wiping her foot vigorously on the dirt as a last effort to remove the last of the cow crap) and took a quick scan of their surroundings. "Jackie, would you show our guests to their rooms?" Ella asked.  
  
"Yes'm," Jackie said. "Follow me, please."  
  
They started to climb up the stairs, but Jackie whipped around before they hit the third step and said in a low voice with a German accent, "Stay close to the candles. The stairs. can be treacherous."  
  
Arnold and Helga exchanged confused glances  
  
"Wha-" Arnold was shushed immediately by Jackie, who gave him a devilish grin. After Arnold and Helga put their things in their rooms, they were stopped by Jackie before they could go out to do anything more.  
  
"You might want to change your clothes," Jackie said.  
  
"Why?" Helga asked skeptically.  
  
"Are you really going to work in [I]that[/I]?"  
  
* * *  
  
The next week held many surprises. They had to go into town and buy more head of cattle, and then brand all the new additions, including calves that hadn't been branded yet. One of the cows calved in the middle of the night during a rainstorm. They also had to help shod most of the horses that were kept on the ranch.  
  
By the end of the week, the two city-dwellers had learned many a useful thing, including how to ride a horse.  
  
Arnold, Helga and Jackie were watching over a grazing herd in about the middle of their second week. Helga's horse pranced from side to side and chomped at the bit.  
  
"This flea-bitten horse won't stand [I]still![/I]"  
  
"That flea-bitten horse is one of the best bred horses in the state!" Jackie pointed out.  
  
"He still ain't standing in one spot."  
  
Arnold smiled to himself, shook his head and scanned the seemingly endless horizon. He heard a soft cry from behind him. Arnold turned to see a small calf run into the forest. He turned his horse and started to go in after it.  
  
"Hey football-head, where are you going?"  
  
"Helga." Jackie said in a warning tone.  
  
"I saw a calf run away from the herd," Arnold said. "I'm just going in after it."  
  
"Wait up, I'll go with you," Jackie said.  
  
"And leave me to tend to these bovines by myself?" Helga asked. "I don't think so. I'll go with you, Arnold."  
  
Jackie started to protest, but stopped herself and smiled.  
  
"Okay," she said, nodding.  
  
Arnold and Helga trotted their horses into the woods. Helga's horse started to prance more. Helga tugged lightly on the reigns to get its attention. Arnold's horse followed Helga's obediently.  
  
"So which way did the calf go?" Helga asked.  
  
"I think it went that way," Arnold indicated an area towards the mountains.  
  
Helga nodded and they turned and started to head in that direction. They rode for ten minutes more before they heard a rustling in the bushes. The calf popped its head out, and when it saw the horses, took off running. Helga's horse reared up and took off after it, with Arnold's horse close behind.  
  
Helga started to shriek like a madwoman. Arnold clung to his saddle horn for dear life. The horses kept chasing after the calf for a while longer until it scampered off into an area with shrubbery just low enough to let the horses pass, but not their passengers.  
  
Helga smacked into a low-hanging tree branch and hung helplessly from it for a few moments while her horse ran ahead. Arnold soon suffered the same fate on the same tree branch. The two slid down from their involuntary perch and hit the ground hard. Neither of them moved for a few moments.  
  
"Ow," Arnold said.  
  
"Are we dead?" Helga asked bluntly.  
  
"No," Arnold said, sitting up and checking himself for injuries. "I'm pretty sure we're not."  
  
"Why not?" she asked, moaning. She sat up and held her head in her hands. "I feel like I've been hit by a truck."  
  
"Just a low tree branch," Arnold said. "Are you all right?"  
  
"I'm fine, Arnold," she said. "Just peachy. Don't you think we should start heading back now?"  
  
"No, Helga," he said. "I don't think we should. I have no idea where we are, and I don't think you do either. We should stay here until help arrives. It'll be easier for them to find us if we stay in one spot."  
  
A soft growl came from behind.  
  
"Arnold," Helga said softly. "What was that.?"  
  
They both turned around slowly and came face-to-face with a mountain lion. "Move very slowly," Arnold said. "No sudden movements."  
  
Helga flicked her eyes at him . "'No sudden movements?'" she whispered fiercely. "Then how are we supposed to get [I]outta[/I] here?!"  
  
"By moving slowly," Arnold said.  
  
"Arnold?" Helga whispered. "In case we don't get out of here alive, there's something I want you to know."  
  
"Not now, Helga!" Arnold said.  
  
Helga shut her mouth.  
  
"All right," Arnold said. "Back away very slowly. Like I said, no sudden moves. We don't want to threaten it."  
  
The two nine year olds backed away from the lion. When they were a safe distance away, they turned and ran as fast as they could. They ran for quite a while before stopping to catch their breath.  
  
"Man, that was close," Helga said. She started to walk again, but Arnold yanked on her arm and pulled her back. "What are you doing,[I]football head[/I]?"  
  
Arnold picked up a stick and threw it down where Helga's foot would've been. A bear trap snapped its vicious jaws around the stick. Helga gulped.  
  
"Looks like we'd better watch where we walk," Arnold said. "I think we should get away from these traps. Come on."  
  
Helga followed him without question or retort. When Arnold had navigated the two of them safely through the small area of traps, he turned and smiled at Helga.  
  
"Well, [I]that[/I] wasn't so hard," he said.  
  
Arnold and Helga stepped forward and the ground suddenly gave way from beneath them. They fell down into a large hole that had been dug in the ground. Helga hit the ground hard. She didn't land on her leg right and Arnold winced as he heard a sickening snap (not exactly G-rated material here, is there?). Helga yelped in pain and collapsed into a heap on the ground.  
  
Arnold fell on his stomach. He felt the wind rush out of him and he struggled to gasp for air. He sat up, clutching his chest, trying to breathe. Helga was curled in a ball with one leg stretched out.  
  
"Helga!" he gasped. "Are you all right?"  
  
"Just fine and dandy," Helga said, her voice thick with sarcasm and pain.  
  
"Is your leg broken?" Arnold asked, going to examine it. He touched her skin lightly.  
  
"Of [I]course[/I] it is, [I]Arnold![/I] Didn't you [I]hear[/I] it?!" she cried out.  
  
"Come on, Helga," Arnold said. "Let's sit you up."  
  
"As long as I don't have to move," Helga moaned in reply.  
  
"I'm afraid you do," Arnold said. He grabbed her under the arms and pulled her up into the sitting position, and then pulled her back and leaned her against the hole wall.  
  
"For such a shrimp, you sure do know how to inflict pain on someone, don't you, [I]football head[/I]?" Helga asked fiercely.  
  
"You couldn't just lay like that all day," Arnold said.  
  
"Sure I could," Helga said. "I'd show you, but I'd have to risk moving again."  
  
* * *  
  
"I'm worried about them," Jackie said. "They've been out for three hours and they haven't come back. Ella, I think it's time to jump to conclusions."  
  
"I suppose you're right," Ella sighed. "You should've gone with him, Jackie."  
  
"Then I would've left Helga alone with a herd of cows, Ella," Jackie replied. "I didn't think you would've wanted me to do that, either."  
  
"Yes, yes," Ella said. "I suppose we should call the neighbors to help. Jackie, call your friends and tell them our situation. We'll head out there and start looking for them tomorrow. It's starting to get dark."  
  
Jackie nodded and started to dial a number on her phone.  
  
"Helen?" Jackie turned, and when she was certain that Ella had left the room, she continued.  
  
"It's Jackie. This is important. Meet me at the pond in fifteen minutes. Bring a horse and Velmerica. We've got two kids out there that need our help!"  
  
* * *  
  
Arnold slid down from the side of the hole and hit the ground with a dull thud.  
  
"I can't do it, Helga!" Arnold proclaimed, frustrated. "That's the sixth time I've tried to climb the wall and I just can't do it."  
  
Arnold looked up at the sky. The stars had already come out. A full moon smiled down at the earth, casting down a silver glow.  
  
"Then how are we supposed to get out of here?" Helga asked impatiently. "It's not like [I]I[/I] can do anything."  
  
"I guess we'll just have to wait for Jackie to find us."  
  
Helga snorted.  
  
"Who knows how long that will take," she said.  
  
"I think you should have a little more faith in her," Arnold said. "Right now, she's the only way we can get out of here."  
  
"But what if no one ever finds us, Arnold?" Helga said, her eyes large and wide with fright. "What if we're stuck here until we die of starvation or thirst?"  
  
Arnold put his hand on Helga's shoulder reassuringly.  
  
"Don't worry, Helga," Arnold said. "I'm sure Jackie's on her way right now."  
  
Helga nodded and looked at the ground. There was an awkward silence for a few moments, and then Arnold remembered he still had his hand on her shoulder. He took it off and cleared his throat.  
  
"So. uh." He couldn't think of anything to say. "How's your leg?"  
  
"Broken," Helga answered flatly.  
  
"I mean, how are you feeling?"  
  
"Like I have a broken leg," Helga snapped. "And that there's an annoying football head who won't leave me alone!"  
  
Arnold drew back slightly. He sighed and leaned back against the side of the whole. Helga cursed herself silently for snapping at him again.  
  
"Arnold," she sighed. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to be so mean. You know that, don't you?" Arnold, slightly surprised, smiled and nodded in understanding. "I don't think you're such a bad guy."  
  
"Helga," Arnold said. "Are you saying-"  
  
"[I]Hello?"[/I] a soft call could be heard in the distance. "[I]Arnold? Helga? Are you out there?[/I]"  
  
Helga and Arnold exchanged joyous glances before letting loose a chain of shouting that led their seeker straight to them. A fairly tall dark-blonde haired girl who was about fourteen peered over the side of the hole.  
  
"Hey! Down here!" Arnold cried.  
  
"Arnold and Helga, I presume?" she shouted down.  
  
"Yes!" Helga shouted back. "Get us outta here!"  
  
"No problem!" she winked and disappeared for a moment. A rope was thrown down into the hole. Arnold grabbed onto it and let Helga climb onto his back. They were both pulled up in no time. "Man, you guys are heavy!" The girl sat up on her horse with the rope wrapped around her saddle horn. After Arnold and Helga were out of the hole, the girl jumped down from the horse and flipped out her walkie-talkie.  
  
"Helen to other Away Team Members," she snapped into it.  
  
"Velmerica here!"  
  
"Jackie here! What's up? Any sign of them yet, Helen?"  
  
"Affirmative. Have located and rescued the two MIA's. One of them is obviously in need of medical attention. Request assistance."  
  
"Who's hurt?" Jackie's voice rang with concern.  
  
"The blonde one," Helen said, grinning.  
  
"Funny, funny," Jackie said. "What gender, genius?"  
  
"Girl," Helen said.  
  
"Get her up on the horse and get to the house ASAP. We'll take care of it from there." "Affirmative. Helen out." She slipped her walkie-talkie into her pocket and walked over to Helga. "All right, little lady, let's get you up on Casper."  
  
Helen picked up Helga with ease and carried her over to the horse.  
  
"Put the foot that isn't attached to the broken leg into the stirrup and sit yourself on the horse. I'll help swing the broken leg over the other side. Prepare for pain."  
  
Helga did what she was told (for once) and was on the horse. They left immediately after she was safely on the horse and reached the house shortly. Jackie and another girl waited in front of the house with a doctor. The other girl, who was about the same age as Helen, the elder of Jackie by at least four years, introduced herself to them as Velmerica.  
  
Arnold, Helen, Jackie and Velmerica waited impatiently outside a bedroom door as Helga's leg was set in a splint. A few noises could be heard from inside.  
  
"Are you sure she'll be all right?" Velmerica asked.  
  
"Don't worry," Jackie said. "She'll be back to her old bossy self in no time."  
  
"Unfortunately," Arnold said, smiling slightly.  
  
"I guess you'll be leaving to go back home earlier than you planned, huh?" Helen asked sadly. Jackie nodded.  
  
"I'm afraid so."  
  
"We didn't really get to know you that well, Arnold," Velmerica said. "Parting will be such sweet sorrow!"  
  
"Well, if it's okay with your parents, maybe you could come visit us sometime," Arnold suggested.  
  
"In the big city?" Velmerica and Helen asked in unison. They exchanged glances. "That would be just so cool!" Helen exclaimed.  
  
"We've pretty much lived around here our whole lives," Velmerica explained. "We met Jackie when she was out here working for her sister last summer." Arnold nodded.  
  
The door to the room opened and Ella and the doctor stepped out of the room. "How is she, Doc?" Jackie asked.  
  
"She'll be just fine," the doctor answered. "She'll have to get the cast off in a few weeks."  
  
"You should go pack your things, Jackie," Ella said. "You'll be going back tomorrow."  
  
"Tomorrow?" Helen cried.  
  
"Miss Ella, do you think it would be much trouble if we went with her?" Velmerica asked. "I mean, just to make sure Helga and Arnold are okay, and, well."  
  
"We've never seen a city!" Helen finished enthusiastically.  
  
"It's fine with me," Ella said. "You should call your parents and ask them, too. Jackie? Will your parents be able to handle them?"  
  
"Oh sure," Jackie said. "I have my own room in Arnold's boarding house. I'm sure I'll be able to fit them in it."  
  
Helen and Velmerica gave each other high-fives and ran to the phone. Arnold watched the spectacle for a moment more, and then turned to the doctor.  
  
"Can I go in and see Helga?" he asked.  
  
"Of course," he said. "She's very tired, so you should keep it short so she can get some sleep."  
  
Arnold turned to ask Jackie if he wanted her to join him, but she was shaking her head and waving him away with a smile before he could ask. He raised a puzzled eyebrow at her and then entered the room.  
  
Helga lay in the bed, covered by a light blanket with her leg sticking out the side of the bed. She didn't hear him come in, it seemed. She had her head turned to the side with her eyes closed. Arnold thought she was asleep, so he turned to leave.  
  
"Don't go, Arnold," Helga said softly.  
  
"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you-"  
  
"You didn't."  
  
Arnold pulled up a chair next to her bed and sat down.  
  
"So how's the leg?" he asked.  
  
"Same as the last time you asked [I]Arnold[/I]," Helga said, sitting up and folding her arms over her chest. "Broken. Only this time, it's got some doofy cast on it."  
  
Arnold smiled and shook his head.  
  
"Well at least it's not going to heal incorrectly," Arnold said. "If it did, then they'd have to re-break your leg and set it [I]all over again[/I]. Not fun."  
  
"No, I suppose not," Helga sounded slightly grossed out at the idea of breaking your leg [I]again[/I] on purpose.  
  
"Well, I'm glad to see you're going well, Helga," Arnold said. "I guess I'll let you go to sleep." He stood to leave.  
  
"No-" Helga reached out to stop him. "Do you think you could stay? Just for a few more minutes?"  
  
Arnold hesitated a moment, then sat back down. He leaned forward and rested his hands and chin on the back of the chair and gave her a friendly smile.  
  
"I suppose I can spare a minute," he said.  
  
[b]THE END (WILL IT EVER?! I CERTAINLY HOPE NOT!!)[/b] 


End file.
